Infographics

When Congress is deciding how to spend more than half a trillion dollars of the taxpayers money, it needs to do so in public. It is deeply troubling that the Pentagon’s budget (the National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA) that last year authorized $585 billion in spending—is drafted and voted on by the Senate Armed Services Committee almost entirely in secret. Last year only one quarter of Senators had an opportunity to amend the NDAA—and they did so almost entirely behind closed doors. To learn more go to OpenNDAA.org or See the mini infographics.

When companies extract coal from public land, they are required to pay a royalty to the U.S. government based on the market value of the coal they ectract. But there is a loophole. See the full infographic.

Foreign governments are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to influence U.S. policy. The Foreign Agents Registration Act is meant to track these lobbyists and what they are sending to policy makers. Find out more about the act, and where it falls short, in the full infographic.

Get a quick summary of the Project On Government Oversight's new database of informational materials filed with the Department of Justice by lobbyists hired by foreign interests. See the full infographic.

An internal affairs office at the Department of Justice has found that over the last decade hundreds of federal prosecutors and other Justice employees violated professional ethics, rules or laws. The public, however, is kept in the dark. See the full infographic.

The Air Force plans to base its new jet aircraft, the F-35A, in Vermont even though it scored the lowest among other potential bases and would cost four times as much as a base in Florida. See the full infographic.

A Dept. of State official defended the contractor guarding the U.S. Embassy in Kabul saying they had defended against two attacks, but a closer look shows he may have been referring to unrelated events. See the full infographic.

In Washington, not all national security disclosures are treated equally. While the government has moved aggressively to clamp down on leaks, officials have spilled some state secrets with no repercussions. See the full infographic.

When people talk about Pentagon spending, they often leave out the cost of contrator employees. POGO's analysis shows that the average contractor employees cost nearly three times more than general compensation costs for civilian personnel. See the full infographic.

Major defense contractors have been going around saying the sequestration cuts to Pentagon spending will cause widespread job losses, but history tells a different story. See the full infographic here.

If you listen to the CEOs of the top aerospace and defense contractors, the planned Pentagon spending cuts are going to be devastating to defense industry workers. Don't believe everything you hear. CEOs should take a look at their own compensation packages before they start threatening the jobs of their employees. See the full infographic here.

The Pentagon is developing 96 different major weapons programs. The cost for these programs continues to increase every year through waste and mismanagement, meaning taxpayers are getting fewer weapons for more money. This infographic details some of the areas where money is being wasted and weapons are being delayed. See the full infographic.

Inspectors General are the watchdogs of the federal government. They investiate claims of fraud, waste and abuse and are essecntial to government accountability, but many IG positions have been vacant for months or even years. See the full infographic.

The cost of a proposed nuclear weapons facility, CMRR-NF, has grown dramatically since it was first proposed. Now the price for a single building in a larger facility costs more than the entire facility was supposed to cost. See the full infographic.

The Energy Department wants to spend billions of dollars to enable the production of more nuclear weapon components. The thing is, we've already more of these components-called plutonium pits-lying around that we don't need. See just how many more in the full infographic.

On December 8, 2011, a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee voted that the benefits of drugs like Yaz and Yasmin, two popular birth control pills, outwigh the risks despite an increased risk of potentially fatal blood clots. POGO believes industry influence may have had an impact on the committee's vote. See the full infographic.

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Founded in 1981, the Project On Government Oversight is a nonpartisan independent watchdog that champions good government reforms. POGO’s investigations into corruption, misconduct, and conflicts of interest achieve a more effective, accountable, open, and ethical federal government.